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Luckily, Kimmel said the story “has a happy ending” and went on to thank the staff at Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles, where the emergency procedure occurred.

The doctor “went in there with a scalpel and did some kind of magic that I couldn’t even begin to explain,” he said. “He opened the valve and the operation was a success! It was the longest three hours of my life.”

Kimmel urged viewers to donate to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles to help other kids with serious health conditions. He also made a plea for politicians, both Republican and Democrat, to make sure all Americans have access to medical care, especially those with pre-existing health conditions.

He thanked viewers for their donations and \"lovely and loving tweets\" in a Twitter post early Tuesday morning.

\"On behalf of my family, thank you for the lovely and loving tweets about our son Billy and for your donations to [Children's Hospital Los Angeles],\" he said.

on behalf of my family, thank you for the lovely and loving tweets about our son Billy and for your donations to https://t.co/HOIUvNt8WE XO

— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) May 2, 2017

“If your baby is going to die -- and it doesn't have to -- it shouldn't matter how much money you make,” he said. “I hope you never have to go there but if you do you’ll see so many kids from so many financial backgrounds being cared for so well with so much compassion.”

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